Sunday 6/15 Live Millings (NBA Finals Game 5)

Millting Points: Live Thoughts from Game 5:

8:54 - The National Anthem by Ashanti was terrible. This usually means that the Lakers will win... (In Game 3, David Cook, who was previously praised by the Millings a few weeks ago, butchered the Anthem allowing the Lakers to throw the Celtics off their game.)

8:56 - oooo...Leon Powe is getting the start at center. I think this will pay off for the C's.

8:57 - The Lakers should put more time into hyping up their starting lineups...no pyro? On the flipside...the giant bed sheets that they project on...may explain what Kobe was talking about when he said the Lakers wet the bet big time in Game 4.

9:03 - Doc said "Let's show em what Ooombooontooo is all about"....Is that even the correct pronounciation? It's spelled Ubuntu...where did the mmmm come from? For those who don't know, Ubuntu is a philosophy that Doc stole from Archbishop Desmond Tutu. For some reason....black players respond better to South African Philosophies (Celtics) than White Man Zen (Lakers).

9:08 - Did you notice that the Lakers went to their White Jerseys tonight? It might change their fortune...but I have a hard time seeing Pau Gasol and Vladamir Radmanovic in camouflage.

9:10 - Powe turns it over...Leon needs to have a big game tonight...not for the Celtics to win...but so the Celtics can trade him for something good in the offseason.

9:12 - Adding on to the previous racial commentary, have you noticed that the two best defensive teams in the NBA have only black guys on their 12 man rosters.

9:13 - Rondo is rebounding like this is NBA Jam.

9:24 - For those of you at home wondering what an arm sock actually does, be sure to check out the Wikipedia article on the "Shooting Arm Sleeve"...it keeps the shooting arm warm? What good is that?

9:27 - Upon ABC's use of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" for the pre-commercial replay, let us all wonder how R. Kelly was found innocent last week of all charges against him. As Joses likes to point out...what is more incriminating than the fact that R. Kelly and Michael Jackson wrote the hit song "You Are Not Alone" together? It was clearly a show of solidarity among two dirty dirty men.

9:31 - KG picks up his 2nd foul and forces ABC to censor his vulgarities on 3 separate occasions in 15 seconds. Parents, KG is a good ballplayer...but he is no ideal role model.

9:33 - Do you think the NBA should start marketing Sasha Vujacic's Girl Headband? Would you buy one? Maybe girls would... Maybe girls named Sasha?

9:35 - Lakers shot 65% in the first quarter. That's the percentage necessary to pass medical school. Speaking of education...during the announcement of the starting lineups earlier this year, my good friend Officer John Remka asked me "Hey Millah...don't you think that Kevin Garnett could just get a degree online from the University of Phoenix?" He makes a good point...KG, Perk, and Kobe need to get some kind of online degree...

9:40 - Chris Mihm sighting... Lakers could put an all-white lineup out there right now with Vujacic, Walton, Radmanovic, Gasol, and Mihm. Can any other NBA team even put 4 white guys out there at once?

9:46 - Tony Allen gets a steal! ...and a dunk!

9:47 - Speaking of Tony Allen, I think the last names of NBA players are fake! Ever go into a souvenir shop and look for a keychain with your name on it? Well, the NBA may be outsmarting us all in an effort to sell more jerseys. All of a sudden, more NBA players than ever have last names that are first names. For example: Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Dwayne Wade....and one day you just might name your kid Boozer! David Stern is a genius!

9:51 - After Turiaf commits the charge...none of his Laker teammates go to pick him up off the floor. They ain't know what Ooooombooooonnntooooo is!

10:03 - Sam Cassell is terrible. He's just a backup. Why does he hafta shoot the ball all the time. He should take some lessons from his half-brother Matt Cassel (Tom Brady's backup). Just hand the ball off.

10:09 - Tony Allen scores again...Millings Reader Mike Auyeung believes that Tony Allen will be tonight's "gamechanger."

10:11 - Did Derek Fisher just get a technical foul for picking his nose with his thumb?

10:17 - Looking forward to seeing Bill Walton at halftime. The live updates will be back for the 2nd half.

10:34 - Has anyone noticed if Scal has been activated for this game or not? If this NBA Season ends with the ball in Scal's hands, Matt Chin wins the "Who touches the ball last?" Contest. (For the record, I have Glen "Big Baby" Davis holding onto the ball in a blowout win in Game 6. Who do you have?)

10:40 - If Ray Allen is the Celtics' leading scorer in the Finals, why isn't he getting more recognition as a potential Finals MVP. It may not mean much to you, but I picked Ray Allen long ago in my Finals Preview.

10:42 - It's a well know fact that White Guys can't outrun or outjump Black Guys. But I've also noticed that White athletes have more hair than Black athletes. Could the difference in athleticism simply be attributed to haircut and not skin tone?

10:51 - What's with the video segments in which the NBA Trophy is cradled like a baby? There are only a few inanimate objects worthy to be held like a baby...and the trophy does not make my list...(see image below).
10:58 - Lakers are up 5 with 4 minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, but for the a 2nd straight time I think the Celtics just might win this 1. (Now, you try writing a sentence using 5-4-3-2-1 in that order. Prove to me that you aren't Mill-iterate!)

11:07 - For more word play, L-A-M-A-R--O-D-O-M can be rearranged to spell DOOM ALARM. With a name like DOOM ALARM, did the Lakers even have a chance?

11:10 - In case you were wondering what P-A-U-L--P-I-E-R-C-E can spell....it's "PURE ICE, PAL."

11:24 - How did Luke Walton not grow up to be a 7-footer like his Dad? If only America believed in breeding NBA players like they do in China...

11:27 - Sam Cassell is actually knocking down some shots! Somewhere in Outer Space...they are chanting "MVP, MVP, MVP!"

11:31 - Celts are down 7 with 6:14 left in the game. My requirements for a successful comeback are...you gotta be within 6 points with 4 minutes left.

11:38 - Well, the C's have tied the game with 4:25 left in the game so they can definitely steal this game.

11:41 - Pierce and KG each have 5 fouls with 3:31 left in the game...I'm gonna predict that this game goes into overtime...and look for a Ray Allen game winner.

11:44 - Commentator Mike Breen just used the phrase "house of fire." I wonder if he would say "House on fire" if Eddie House hits a couple of 3s.

11:47 - FYI, Jeff Van Gundy has a man-crush on James Posey.

11:50 - KG just missed a pair of free throws that would have tied the game...I guess Red Auerbach doesn't actually tip free throws in like it was reported in Game 7 of the Cleveland Series. By the way...after Game 4 when Paul Pierce pointed to the sky, was he referencing God or Red Auerbach?

11:54 - There's 1:14 left and Tony Allen checks in...what is Doc thinking? I don't know who I'd rather see right now....Tony Allen or the Bald Black Guy from the annoying GMC commercials...

11:55 - Lakers up 4 with 37 seconds left. Celtics might mail it in...

11:57 - RayRay misses and gives the Lakers possession with 26 ticks left. But Fisher is choking at the free throw line, so this game isn't over yet.

12:00 - Lakers up 5 with 24.8 seconds left. If I'm the coach...I want James Posey shooting this 3.

12:02 - Well, Ray Allen just fouled out with 16.7 seconds left. Forget about the Ray Allen game winner. Looks like Kobe's defensive move in which he caresses the left hip of Paul Pierce from behind will be the difference.

12:05 - House hits a 3 and almost steals the inbounds pass! Shades of Reggie Miller....but the fact that it didn't work out that way....just show you how special Reggie was.

12:06 - It's over. Final Score: Lakers-103, Celtics-98, Scal-0. Whoever sings the National Anthem on Tuesday better do a good job...

Tuesday 6/10 Millings

Millting Points: Random Thoughts:

• It's so hot here in Providence that I'm Millting.
• There's nothing else to do besides hang out in Air Conditioned buildings.
• That's all for the Millings today.
  

Monday 6/9 Makeup Millings

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to my favorite diner of all time, Family Fare in Peabody, MA. After an interesting dinner on Friday night (See MillDud), it was great to go to some place familiar and trustworthy. If your live near the North Shore area and are looking for a restaurant to host father-son breakfasts, look no further than Family Fare and be sure to order your kid a Hungry Man Special (3 eggs, 2 bacon, 2 sausages, 2 pieces of toast, 2 plate sized pancakes, a side of potatoes, and bottomless coffee) for roughly $6.

Since much has happened since Saturday, let me award an additional MillStar Award to Celtics Super-Sub Leon Powe. A year ago, I joked that Leon was the most efficient player in the NBA because he would get 6 points and 4 rebounds in about 4 minutes of playing time per game, but breaking out for 21 points in 15 minutes of the NBA Finals is unheard of. For all those conspiracy theorists who think the NBA is rigged, do you think the halftime feel-good story about Powe had anything to do with the fact that he was also the player of the game?

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to LJ's BBQ in Pawtucket. Trying to uncover more of the hidden gems of Rhode Island Cuisine, I took a friend to LJ's in search of such gem-ness. We ended up being intrigued by the largest meal on the menu. When I asked the waitress if the meal would be plenty for two people, she claimed it would be enough. Following a lackluster BBQ meal, we were surprised to see an extra $2 charge tacked onto our bill for sharing a meal. Upon seeing this, my friend and I looked at each other and simply said "What a MillDud!"

A second MillDud goes to Lisa Gomi aka Umami. One week ago, Umami complained (rightly so) that the Millings were getting way too NBA-heavy and might alienate readers such as herself; however, in recent days Umami has begun to partake in basketball trash talk and has claimed to be Anti-Celtic. For doing her best John-Kerry-eating-pancakes-in-his-slippers impression (flip-flopping), Umami gets today's 2nd MillDud.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: In honor of the current heat wave we are experiencing, it is time to select a song by your favorite heat-related boy band... 98 degrees! Which song shall I choose? How bout..."My Everything" featuring Jessica Simpson as Nick Lachey's love interest.

Milligan: When I was a sophomore at Brown, a bunch of us decided to stay over night at the Sciences Library (even though back then it closed at 2AM). Jimmy and I went there earlier in the evening to scout out the territory. We pulled down all the shades on one floor and set up chairs to mark off spots on the floor that turned on any motion sensor lights. While we successfully avoided getting booted out of the SciLi at 2AM, it didn't all turn out for the best. In the early hours of sunlight, we decided to go climb to the roof (which at the time was the highest point in Providence). On the way down, though, one of our comrades feel about 10 feet onto her shoulder. As she grasped her shoulder in pain, we didn't know what to do. Since it was still a few hours before the library opened again, we could either have her tough it out another few hours or get her to medical attention as soon as possible. We decided on the second option...but then we had to figure out how to escape the library. We could either try to turn ourselves in to the campus police or try to break out and run away. Afraid of punishment, we decided to go out the exits and all run in different directions so the cops couldn't get all of us. Even though this idea had "genius" written all over it (sarcasm)...all the doors were locked. We called the cops and awaited our punishment. When the cop came, he lectured us on how we have to play by the rules and how breaking the rules in "the real world" could get us in serious trouble...but for some reason he thought that we were breaking the rule to get a few extra hours of studying done...so he just let us off with a simple warning to play by the rules even if we have a killer exam to study for (which we didn't). I spent the rest of the morning in the hospital with our fallen comrade and made a vow to never climb anything again.

Millage People Shout Out: A Shout Out to Carrie Lutjens, who noticed that there weren't any Millings on Friday. Keep up the effort, Carrie.

Thursday 6/5 Poor Man's Millings

Millting Points: Things I could be doing right now instead of studying:

• Have a Celtics Party.
• Figure out what I want to accomplish before I die.
  
• Watch Chinese soap operas.
• Actually put some time into a solid edition of the Daily Millings.

Millage People Shout Out: Sorry to you loyal readers out there...especially to the 31 (yes, 31) of you in the "I Read the Daily Millings Everyday at dailymillings.blogspot.com" Facebook Group. Big test tomorrow.

Wednesday 6/4 Sister's Day Millings

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to my sister Kathryn because today is her twenty-somethingth birthday. She has really earned her MillStar Award by putting up with my antics over the years. (See Milligans)

A Series of Sister-Related Milligans: In late 1992, I first became a fan of pro wrestling. Something about it really got me hooked to the point that I pretended to be a wrestler. I started by perfecting some basic moves on stuffed animals...then I invented some of my own moves on larger objects like those cushion chair things. Eventually, I had to practice my craft on real people...including my sister. I remember one incident, in particular, when my sister was laying down on her bed (in slumber party position-belly down and knees bent) watching television. Without her noticing, I climbed up onto a 4ft high bookcase behind her and did a diving somersault into her. From the momentum of my tumble, she rolled off the bed and her head hit the desk. If I remember correctly, I felt pretty bad...this is one of the times I thought my sister was legitimately hurt (because she would often feign an injury just to get me in trouble).

When I was in 4th or 5th grade, I noticed that my sister had grown tired of practicing the piano to the point that my mom would yell at her for not doing so. Seeing an opening to make myself look better by making her look worse, I told my mom to sign me up for piano lessons. For a year or so, I did pretty good in my piano lessons. I even did some kind of piano evaluation thing that my sister hadn't done. Feeling a sense of accomplishment, my interest in piano was revealed to be a fraud and I didn't to take lessons any more. It is acts like these that make me ashamed of how I treated my sister while growing up and motivate me to treat her better nowadays.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to my mom and dad, who made it all possible.

Tuesday 6/3 NBA-less Millings?

Millting Points: Things I can write about that are not related to the NBA:

• Spelling
• Politics
• New Kids on the Block
• Fashion
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to 13-year-old Sameer Mishra, who won the National Spelling Bee last week. The highlight of the competition was his spelling of the word "Numb Nut." Okay, it was Numnah...try using numnah in a sentence today.

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to Massachusetts Senior Senator (and American Royalty), Edward "Ted" Kennedy. You may have just had successful brain surgery....but because you escaped any real punishment for killing a woman 40 years ago, you are the first political MillDud.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: With the stunning return of the New Kids on the Block and their shameless attempt at having a "summertime" hit, the song of the day goes to "Stay the Same" by the youngest member of NKOTB, Joey McIntyre. I don't have perfect pitch or anything, but I think the choir is out of tune in the beginning of the music video when they're in the studio. Am I right?

MillBox:
Question: What's the deal with girls wearing pants/shorts with words on the butt?
Miller: Good question...I think it's a travesty to the moral fiber of America and I don't like it one bit. Let me break it down for you. First of all, you can't help but look and you might be labeled as a pervert for doing so. There's a double standard when it comes to noticing things on girls...when you don't notice a new haircut there's a penalty, but if you notice there are words on her butt, there's no reward. I mean...we were all taught at a very young age to read as much as possible...so if you had a giant word tattoo on your shoulder (a la Carly Smithson), I would try to read that, too...but not because I have a thing for shoulders. Second, I've noticed that some girls wear the word "JUICY" on their butts...how did that even become trendy? If they sold T-shirts that said "BOOBS" across the chest, would you wear those, too? Once again, I admit that I am no fashion expert...but c'mon...words on the booty?

Didier Dinh's NBA Dinh-sider: The Celtics strength will make the Lakers choke. Los Angeles will miss their 3pointers, Pau Gasol will have trouble, Odom will choke and that will force Mr. Bryant to take over and the Lakers will fall cold. Paul Pierce tends to shine against them too and he will force Kobe to guard him one on one, which will add on to Kobe Bryant's deterioration in performance through out the series. And though, every Derek Fisher team fights till the end, I'm calling Celtics in 5. That's right, I'm calling them out! As much as I would love to have them win in Boston I think this one will end rather quickly.

Millage People Shout-out: A big shout out to the Umamster, who hopefully will enjoy this edition of the Millings. With the exception of the NBA Dinh-sider, I tried to talk about things other than the NBA and even tried to include some of my expertise regarding fashion.

Monday 6/2 Millings

Millting Points: NBA Finals:

• Prediction: Celtics in 6. Also, I think Game 6 will be a blowout win with Scal holding onto the ball as time expires.
  
• Finals MVP: Believe it or not, Ray Allen
• Aftermath: Doc Rivers will suddenly be considered one of the better coaches in the NBA.
  
• The Toughest Matchup for the Celtics: No, not Kobe. Let's just hope Violet Palmer is nowhere to be found. If Hilary and Barack were to have a lovechild daughter who wanted to be an NBA referee, Violet Palmer did not set a good precedent for her.
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to NBA analyst, Tim Legler. Out of the 10 "experts" on ESPN.com, Legler was the only one to pick the Celtics to win. He thinks the Celtics will win in 7 games, though...

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to NBA Commisioner, David Stern. How do you explain the scheduling of the Finals? Game 1 is on Thursday...okay, I get it...you want to steal viewers from NBC's Thursday lineup.....but Game 2 isn't until Sunday...why isn't it on Saturday? Perhaps they don't want to provide TOO MUCH basketball in one day since we all know how NBA fans are ALSO WNBA fans.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: Here at the Daily Millings recently, we've put a little focus on the so-called "friend zone." Just to give you a more in-depth view of the "friend zone" (this time from the female perspective), the song of the day is Taylor Swift's "Teardrops on my Guitar." Just watch the music video and tell me what Drew's problem is?!?

Millage People Shout-out: I want to give a shout out to some old guy at Verizon Wireless, who kindly waived the $50 charge for the repairing of my cell phone. I am also grateful that "repairing" actually means "replacement with a brand new out-of-the-box version."

Friday 5/30 Weekend Millings

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to one of my fave 5 NBA players of all time, Vlade Divac. With the news of the NBA penalizing floppers starting next season, the Yugoslavian will go down in NBA history as the greatest flopper of all time (in my opinion at least). He wasn't called "the Trout" for nothing.

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to Clayton Holmes Grissom better known to us as "The Invisible" Clay Aiken. In August, Aiken will father a child...but just when I thought he might finally prove to us he's not gay...it turns out he merely donated his sperm and didn't put it there himself.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: On my drive home home today, I waited out the traffic by listening to some Black People music. One of the most intellectually stimulating songs I heard was "She Got It" by 2 Pistols featuring T-Pain. Monday's MillStar Award is yours if you can correctly count the number of times "She Got It" is said including the echoes.

Milligan: When I was in 11th Grade, a girl called me up at home and asked if I would go to the Junior Prom with her. I remember my mom picked up the phone and told me it was a girl. For some reason, the thought of having to my parents I was going to prom scared me...so I told the girl I wasn't going to go...while using really vague language because my parents were listening to my end of the conversation. In retrospect, I think I would have gone if I liked the girl who asked me. But for the sake of "the cycle," I probably should have said "yes" and gone to the prom anyway. (See the MillBox for more on "the cycle").

MillBox:
Question: So if a guy that I don't like romantically asks me out, shouldn't I just say "no" so he doesn't get the wrong idea? ~Inexperienced Girl, Virginia
Miller: If he has no criminal record, you MUST say "yes!" There is no way around it. If you say "no," you will shatter his confidence and he may never be able to ask another girl out. By saying "no" to him, you are not only hurting this guy, you are also hurting girls that may be waiting for him to ask them out. By saying "no," you break the cycle. Do the right thing, ladies; accept the free dinner for the sake of your fellow woman.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to Tony Allen, who finally did something positive. By aggravating his old injury in practice, he has opened up a roster spot for the Boston Celtics to have a Token White Guy on their roster. Looking at the racial distribution of both Eastern Conference Finals Rosters, Brian Scalabrine proves that "There Can Only Be One."

Thursday 5/29 Very Quick Millings

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to the Arm Sock. For years, I hated you on the arms of Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and this annoying red headed dude from intramural basketball that thought he was good but wasn't. But now that you've found Ray Allen, I'm happy for you.

That's all for today.

Wednesday 5/28 Delayed Millings

Millting Points: Thoughts on living alone:

• It's kinda weird.
• I realized why normal people go to bed so early...
• ...there's nothing to do late at night.
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to Vince McMahon for suggesting that he is going to give away one million dollars of his own money to WWE fans over the course of the next few weeks. Vince is such a genius that he might only be giving away "a chance" at one million dollars, but he'll still get massive ratings. Let's hope this doesn't earn an XFL sized MillDud in the coming weeks.

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to the WNBA. This MillDud is long overdue. Does the WNBA seriously think it can guilt trip me into watching them? Their new commercials seem to suggest that I wouldn't disparage their league...it's good thing I am not easily persuaded by commercials shown during NBA games...otherwise I would try to dive into a basketball court head first (courtesy of Sprite).

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: It's always been a dream of mine to go to an open mic night and perform the "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Theme Song." The fact that almost no one knows the verses of the song means that it would take people a full verse to realize that I was actually singing the Power Rangers song and not some generic (but serious) rock song.

Milligan: When I was a Freshman in college, Mike Chen and I got pretty experimental with our haircuts. Though retaining his trademark "poofy hair," he got a Jesus fish shaved into the back of his head. I, on the other hand, being a little less righteous and a little more narcissistic, got the letter "M" shaved into the back of mine. Because we were about 8 years late on the whole shaving-into-the-back-of-the-head trend, it's something I'd like to forget.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to Tim Havens for revealing the awkwardness of his past relationships. Not only is Tim happily married now, but he also has New York Times paparazzi stalking him while he enjoys his morning cereal. Tim is proof that you too can overcome a past history of awkward pseudo-relationships that abruptly end.

Tuesday 5/27 Millings

Millting Points: Things I know about Singapore:

• Don't be naughty or you'll be caned.
• Selling gum is illegal unless it's nicotine gum. What kind of society awards smoking?!?
• Singaporean men must serve two years for an army with no enemy.
  
• According to Scott Yi, all Singaporeans look the same.
• Like all Asian countries, Singapore has yet to utilize the undershirt.
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to Kara Dziobek, who was the first person to join the "I read the Daily Millings everyday on dailymillings.blogspot.com" Facebook group.

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to Trinity Brewhouse, which was closed last night because of Memorial Day. They would have been lucky to get our business, because East Ave Irish Pub in Pawtucket is the rich man's Trinity Brewhouse. Not only does East Ave also have 20 cent wing Mondays, it has the wings in 4 different varieties.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: The song of the day goes to "Emphasis" by various bands from Mars Hill Church. In our time at Citylife Church, Joses and I were dazzled by this song. It is interesting to note that the word "emphasis" fails to appear in this song at all. Perhaps, this song will take off and become this generation's "Shout to the Lord."

Milligan: When I was in 8th grade, I started to care about what I was wearing. At the time, it was trendy for boys to wear an unbuttoned short-sleeved plaid shirt over a white undershirt and khaki shorts. I remember waking up about a half hour earlier to iron my clothes before school. Considering the fact that I didn't even begin to like girls until the 10th grade, I gladly trade in the ironing skills I acquired for about 365 extra hours of sleep.

MillBox:
Question: If I wanted to ask you or Joses or Jimmy a question for the Daily Millings, what should I do?
Miller: Well, you should post your question as a comment on this blog or you can email your question to dailymillings@gmail.com if you wish to remain anonymous (even though you can comment anonymously on this blog).

Joses Ho's HoBag:
Question: What's your advice to any CHC (our campus fellowship, College Hill for Christ) men looking to date?
Joses: Start early.

Didier Dinh's NBA Dinh-sider: To Coach Doc Rivers...Where is Eddie House when we need him? He saved your team the previous round and you're going to bury him on the bench again? Is it because you're afraid that he cannot bring up the ball? Ray Allen and Paul Pierce do that job most of the times when he's on the floor anyway! As we were shooting 30% the entire night isn't it logical to give your second best shooter a try?? You have given the Celtics a very inconsistent rotation this entire post-season, which prevents the guys off the bench to get any kind of rhythm. Do the right thing and find some minutes for Eddie.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to the mystery person who is reading this blog from Singapore. Since Joses and his entire family is still in the states, I have no clue who you are. Please identify yourself!

Monday 5/26 Memorial Day Millings

Millting Points: Since it's Memorial Day, here is a list of the coolest things with the word "Memorial" in their names.

1. Peabody Veterans Memorial High School - the high school that produced me.
2. Leonard P. Zakem Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge - the awesome looking bridge in Boston right next to the TD Banknorth Boston Garden.
3. Uhhh...that's all.
   

Daily MillStar: In honor of Memorial Day, today's MillCredit goes to my two favorite military men of all time, "The Chicken Army" ...of General Tso and Colonel Sanders. Did you know that General Tso was a real general? Even so, did you know that Colonel Sanders is probably the most popular military man (and white guy) in China?

Daily MillDud: This MillDud goes to Fung Wah Bus Co. for being stupid. Quiz Question: How does a 4 hour bus ride turn into a 7 hour bus ride? If you answered, "A flat tire and waiting 2 hours on the side of the highway," then ding ding ding you are absolutely correct!

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: With Jimmy leaving today, the song of the day can only be Flo Rida's "(Shawty Got) Low." Instead of linking you to the Flo Rida music video, I have decided to link you to how we found the song in the first place. We were watching on of Jimmy's favorite shows (the Ellen Degeneres show) and we realized the song was so catchy that we had to start dancing, too.

Milligan: When I was in 6th grade, I participated in backyard wrestling. We would take all the things we learned from watching the WWF on television and use them to fight each other...for real. We did not script the outcomes of the matches. Typically, the matches would end by submission, when someone applied some kind of chokehold that restricted the airways. Looking back on it, I'm surprised we didn't get hurt at all. If I could do it again, I would suggest that we script it all.

MillBox:
Question: If you were on a date with Lisa Loeb, what would you do? ~Lucas Ho, Singapore
Miller: I would take her to a karaoke bar and sing a song to her. I would serenade her with a very poorly sung version of her hit song "Stay (I Missed You)" hoping that butchering her only claim to fame would win me her heart.

Joses Ho's HoBag:
Question: Joses, if you could say something to a very special girl out there what would it be?
Joses (to a very special girl out there): I wish I could have seen you before you had flown off, but I'm happy we got to hang out your last night here.

Jimmy Tull's TuleBag:
Question: Seriously, do you really watch the Ellen DeGeneres Show? ~Ellen DeGeneres, Burbank, California
Jimmy: No I do not "seriously" watch it. I mean we've probably only seen it a couple of times in the last couple of months. So, so I do not seriously watch it. ...Notice that the question didn't ask if I enjoy it.

Millage People Shout-out: I want to give a shout out to Anna Hsu, who is the very first person to shamelessly ask for a Millage People Shout-out.

Friday 5/23 Commencement Millings

Millting Points: Brown University Class of 2008 Thoughts:

• Four years already? That was fast...I can't even remember Joses's junior year.
• 135 Lloyd: How long before the MillBoard Charts Song of the Day is Flo Rida?
  
• Who's the baccalaureate speaker? Was Claire Huxtable booked this weekend?
• Famous parents tracking: Chris Berman and Dustin Hoffman return!
  
• The two-time Couple of the Year, Herman Hsu and Ling Phoun, are moving on. Which pair will take the title next year?
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to my landlord Phil McMaster, who drove Nick to the airport yesterday. Besides that, Phil always tells it like it is and even wishes you luck when you go to parties (...whatever that means).

Daily MillDud: This Commencement MillDud goes to Brown Women (meaning females at Brown and not the hot latinas out there that didn't go to Brown). How in the world are you gonna let Jimmy and Joses go home single?

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: In honor of the Class of 2008, the song of the day is "Leave the Memories Alone" by Fuel. Even though the repetition of the words "You'll Never Change" is contrary to the spirit of graduating, the song is just too catchy to not be the anthem of this year's graduating classes. This song also served as the retirement anthem for famed professional wrestler Ric Flair.

Milligan: When I was in Kindergarten, I cheated on a test for the very first time. And can you believe that I actually got caught?!? It turns out that I cheated off of some one who would eventually stay back in Kindergarten...bad move. (Disclaimer for the kids out there: Not only is cheating morally wrong...it's also not a fool-proof system...especially if you cheat off fools.)

MillBox:
Question: I know I let you down in Game 1, so I scored 25 points last night. Do you forgive me? ~Walter Ray Allen, Waltham, MA
Miller: Well, RayRay...you didn't win, but I forgive you. I was finally warming up to the idea of never winning on the road to prove everyone wrong, but I'm gonna agree with some of the NBA analysts who say "Maybe losing one at home will finally motivate them to win on the road."

Joses Lucas Ho's HoBag:
Question: Lucas, it must be tough being Joses's identical twin. What do you think of his topless photos on facebook? Do you ever get upset that he's not only flaunting his own body but also an exact replica of your body?
Lucas: What makes you think that my body is as flabby as his?

Jimmy Tull's TuleBag:
Question: What's the stupidest thing you've done in college?
Jimmy: I mean...realistically...it's probably the patented Jimmy Tull "Oh you thought we were dating for the past couple of weeks...not anymore...cuz I'm just gonna ignore you." It's been done three times. Remember 2004?

Millage People Shout-out: I want to give a quick shout out to my Grandpa, who as of Monday morning, is in heaven. Though he had many hopes for me, my only hope for him was that he would indeed go to heaven one day. Of his 89 years on Earth, it took him about 82 before he smartened up and reconciled with God. Since eternal life, by definition, is "knowing the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom He sent," my Grandpa is already moving on to his 8th year of eternal life...but now the suffering is gone.

Thursday 5/22 Musical Millings

Millting Points: American Idol thoughts:

• Amanda Overmyer really scares me. How scary???...think Roseanne scary.
  
• Once Carly Smithson got voted off...the show became harder to watch.
• How did Chikezie not make it big?!? I mean, his full name is Chikezie Eze!!!
• Instead of giving cars both Davids, they should have given both cars to David Cook.
• Seeing David Cook win it makes me genuinely happy...like Red Sox 2004 happy.
• Seeing David Archuleta lose it makes me wonder if his dad will ground him for life.
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to Jimmy Tull for filling in for Joses. Because Joses is in New York picking his family up at the airport, we here at the Daily Millings have a new question and answer segment called Jimmy Tull's Tulebag (see below).

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to David Archuleta. No explanations needed.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: Since last night marked the finale of American Idol Season 7, the song of the day goes to my favorite performance of the season: "Always Be My Baby" by David Cook. The original by Mariah Carey reminds of when I first started following music (see the Milligan). This version, though, is so creepy that I like it. For some reason, a girl singing "don't you know you can't escape me" is a lot different from a guy singing it. Write THAT down as a gender difference.

Milligan: When I was in 5th grade I knew absolutely nothing about music, but for some reason all the other kids at school did. I remember one time being asked if I liked the Beatles. Because I knew for a fact that my "uncool" Dad loves the Beatles, I thought they would surely be deemed as "uncool." I told my friends that the Beatles were awful and got criticized. Boy, was I wrong.

MillBox:
Question: What do you think of the "There can only be one" commercials for the NBA playoffs?
Miller: I think someone needs to make a spoof where they match up half of Sam Cassell's face with half of Mike Bibby's face. The ugliest man in basketball...there can only be one.

Jimmy Tull's TuleBag:
Question: Jimmy, how do you know if a girl is interested in you? ~M.F. Thingy, Providence, RI
Jimmy: Unfortunately for me, it has to be obvious. It has to be obvious in terms of gratuitous affection, her treating you differently than her other guy friends, and sometimes you can just see it in her eyes...however, sometimes you can be wrong about the signs and you're so far into the "friend zone" that you didn't even know what hit you. That pretty much sums up my life.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to the family of Joses Ho. They're coming today for commencement weekend. Should I make Joses look bad by talking to them in Cantonese?

Wednesday 5/21 Very NBA Heavy Millings

Millting Points: Assorted NBA stuff:

• Celtics won it fairly easily...maybe I should have picked them to win in 5.
• The Allens: Ray didn't score 20, but Tony did get some playing time.
  
• Western Conference Finals Prediction: Lakers in 7.
• How in the world did the Bulls win the Draft Lottery! I think they should take hometown boy Derrick Rose and propose a Hinrich, Deng, Gooden, Noah trade for Carmelo and Camby.
  

Daily MillStar: A MillCredit goes to Jeff Van Gundy. I love his commentary...he's the anti-Doris Burke. He has the best idea for an NBA rule change I've ever heard: a made half court shot immediately ties the game.

Daily MillDud: Today's MillDud goes to Mike D'Antoni for choosing the Knicks over the Bulls. Sure, the money was better...but think about having the Derrick Rose instead of Stephon Marbury as your team's best point guard. A second MillDud goes to Kirk Hinrich, who all of sudden, lost his job to a ping pong ball.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: The song of the day is "Jamie Smiles" from the movie Just Friends. This movie is a must-see if you've ever been caught in the friend zone...it could be painful to watch, though, if you can relate to the main character's plight.

Milligan: If I could go back in time, I would be sure to go to a Celtics game in the old Boston Garden. I've been to the new Garden/Fleetcenter many a time; however, I've only been to the original Boston Garden for Disney on Ice's production of Peter Pan. I did wear a green hat that day...but I was a little embarrassed that it had a feather in it.

MillBox:
Question: How do you come up with all of these "Mill" words?
Miller: One day, I looked up the letter M in the Encyclopedia and looked for all the Mill words I could use for a future blog project. You'd be surprised what other words are just waiting to be unleashed such as Mill-itant, Milldew, Millshake, Mill-imeter, Milliteracy, Millnourished, Millegitamate, Mill-asia (like Malaysia), Millanoma, Millody, Millodrama, and Millegal Aliens.

Joses Ho's HoBag:
Question: Joses, imagine being on your dream date...what are you wearing?
Joses: Nothing.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to ESPN360.com for allowing me to enjoy the Celtics Game.

Tuesday 5/20 Millings

Millting Points: My Predictions for the NBA Eastern Conference Finals:

• Celtics in 7. They will be the first NBA champs to never win a road playoff game.
  
• Ray Allen will score 20 points in Game 1.
• Tony Allen will get some playing time and make a bonehead play.
• If Violet Palmer refs a game in this series, the Celtics will lose that game.
  

Daily MillStar: The first MillCredit goes to the return of the Daily Millings. We're Back!!! The new format is very quick and witty without giant text blocks...it's much more conducive for putting the "daily" into the Daily Millings.

Daily MillDud: A MillDud goes to the college minister at Citylife Presbyterian Church because it took him a whole semester to talk to Joses and me even though we always sit a row behind him in service. Coincidentally, he noticed us the only week in which there wasn't a Korean guy sitting directly behind him giving him backrubs.

Millustration (A Simile to Scratch your Skull): David Archuletta is like Clay Aiken. Archie will ALSO finish as American Idol runner-up because the girls ALSO think he's really cute..but when his moment of glory fades, people will ALSO wonder if he's gay. The only difference? ...one of them is Mormon and one of them is Invisible.

MillBoard Charts Song of the Day: In honor of Simon Cowell, I've decided to choose "Bleeding Love" as the Song of the Day. HOWEVER, I'm going to choose the Jesse McCartney version over the much more popular (and better) Leona Lewis version! Jesse co-wrote this song with OneRepublic frontman and missionary kid Ryan Tedder. Sure, Jesse sings the song like a wimpy hemophiliac, but still, let's give the man some props.

Milligan (Something I would do over): In 7th grade, I got a detention for doing a series of X-Pac kicks on a kid in gym class. I haven't seen the kid since 8th grade, but boy would I love to apologize to him.

MillBox:
Question: What do you think of my no-hitter last night? ~Jonathan Lester, Boston MA
Miller: It was incredible. You may walk an awful lot of guys, but last night you showed the world that chemotherapy might be a better performance-enhancer than steroids. Kids everywhere should be standing in front of the microwave hoping to put a little bit more zip on their fastball.

Joses Ho's HoBag:
Question: Joses, since you're an expert in romance...how would you approach a beauty queen? ~Pathetic in Providence
Joses: This one's easy. I would go on youtube and watch clips of her pageants...get to know her a bit. That should be enough to get you through a date.

Millage People Shout-out: Mad props to Didier for almost making dreams come true. (See previous item).